Increased interest of Spanish-speaking markets in Greece
The high interest of Spanish-speaking tourists remains in effect in Greece in 2023, as based on the data of pre-bookings from these so far, this year there will be an increase in arrivals compared to 2022.
This conclusion arose from his participation EOT at the 43rd International Tourism Fair FITUR 2023, held in Madrid from January 18 to 22.
The EOT participated with a 240 sqm stand and 33 co-exhibitors, between the regions of Central Macedonia and Eastern Macedonia-Thrace, as well as the Municipality of Skiathos. The Greek stand, which was located in the central corridor, a space dedicated exclusively to European countries, attracted thousands of citizens throughout the exhibition, who were looking for information and useful information to plan their trip to our country.
The EOT stand was visited by, among others, the ambassador of Greece in Spain, Ilias Fotopoulos and the Secretary General of the World Tourism Organization (WTO), Zurab Pololikashvili, who had a special meeting with the mayor of Skiathos, Theodore Juma, and the head of the Spanish EOT Service, Calliope Kourousia. Also, Mrs. Kourousia accompanied the mayor of Skiathos to his meeting with the airline company Vueling.
In total, during the exhibition the EOT Service of Spain held 180 meetings with Spanish and Portuguese industry professionals, as well as other tourism businesses from South America examining the prospects for development in target audiences.
The head of Spain’s EOT Service also participated in a panel on innovation, tourism development and sustainability at the invitation of the Balearic Government, representing the island of Tilos. In her intervention, Mrs. Kourousia referred to the unique initiative of Tilos to become the “First Green Island of the Mediterranean”, a fact that, in addition to the great recognition, has so far brought four European awards for energy transition and innovation.
FITUR in numbers
At this year’s FITUR, with Guatemala as the honored country, a total of 131 countries, 755 exhibitors and 8,360 companies participated. During the first three days, dedicated exclusively to professionals, there was a 68% increase in their presence compared to 2022, while the last two days when the exhibition opened its doors to the public, the number of visitors tripled compared to the previous year, reaching 222,000 people.
More than 6,300 journalists were identified in the report (increased by 58% compared to 2022), from media in Spain and 46 other countries. 26% more news stories than in 2022 and a reported audience of 43.8 million.
SOURCE: APE